Travel mugs of the prior art come in a variety of styles and configurations, but most, if not all, are designed to retard the natural cooling of the liquid so that the user may enjoy a hot beverage longer than would otherwise be possible. Existing mugs use various materials, lids, vacuum chambers, and the like to maintain the temperature.
Because of the potentially elevated temperatures of the liquids held in mugs of the prior art, a user must generally wait for the beverage to cool before consuming, or risk injury.
Devices in the prior art have attempted to address this problem through various means. For example, some other devices cool hot beverages within cup or mug by separating a portion of the drink in the lid. However, these devices are lacking in several respects. First, they may not be effective enough to cool beverages from the highest possible temperature (212° F.) to the temperature range widely regarded as truly safe (136° F.). Second, they may fail even to cool beverages to the devices' maximum capacity from the very first sip, but may become more effective only with subsequent sips. Third, they are inconvenient to use, requiring the user to tip the cup more and more with each successive sip.
Alternative methods employ phase change material (PCM) encased in metal capsules that cool hot beverages when immersed in liquid. However, these devices require a wait (5 minutes, per instructions) for the product to absorb the beverage's heat, and cool the entire contents of the cup or mug into which they are inserted at the same time, meaning the consumer must rush to finish drinking quickly once the beverage has reached target temperature. These capsules also take up space inside the mug and significantly reduce the volume of beverage itself that the mug can carry.
Accordingly, what is needed is a thermal beverage container that rapidly cools the liquid as the user drinks from the container, without significant initial waiting or significant waiting between subsequent sips.
What is further needed is a thermal beverage container that cools the liquid to a safe drinking temperature from the initial sip.
What is further needed is a thermal beverage container that cools the liquid without requiring progressively more uncomfortable tipping to cool the liquid, and permits consumption using a straw.
What is further needed is a thermal beverage container that cools only the amount of beverage being consumed at the moment, and leaves the remainder hot, so the user can finish the contents of his tumbler at satisfying temperature at his leisure.
What is still further needed is a thermal beverage container that brews and cools South American mate or tea in the Chinese gongfu style. The mate and gongfu practices require brewing a small quantity of beverage at a time (e.g., 1-2 oz.), drinking it, and then repeating multiple times, until a full beverage serving is consumed. Since the ideal brewing temperature of mate and tea is higher than the safe drinking temperature, what is needed is a thermal beverage container that cools beverage in discrete portions, immediately after each portion is brewed, while leaving the unused water for brewing still hot.
Lastly, what is needed is a thermal beverage container that is volumetrically efficient and substantially maximizes the amount of volume available for liquid within the device.